Sure, he knew Tony Canadeo needed a kidney transplant in the early 1970s. But organ donation wasn’t at the forefront of former Green Bay Packers running back John Brockington’s mind until his own near death experience changed that.

“I had no idea what this whole world was about before I got sick. Why would I?” Brockington said. “I had no one in my family that was sick with it. I didn’t know anybody who was sick with it, except Tony Canadeo.”

Since that transplant, Brockington and his wife, Diane, have spent more a dozen years working through the John Brockington Foundation to educate people about organ donation while also helping transplant patients, families and donors with costs – like food, lodging and travel expenses – tied to transplant operations in the San Diego area.

After all, Diane was John’s donor.

“This is very practical,” said Diane Brockington, executive director of the foundation. “I had a good, dear, friend (John) who had a life expectancy of five years on dialysis. I was healthy, I was 54, I informed myself about the risks and just said ‘test me.’” Continue reading